Lieutenant general (India)

Equivalent ranks of Indian military
	Commissioned ranks
	Junior commissioned ranks
	Non-commissioned ranks
	Footnotes
	↑ Risaldar major in cavalry and armoured regiments; ↑ Risaldar in cavalry and armoured regiments; ↑ Naib risaldar in cavalry and armoured regiments.; Called jemadar until 1965.;

Lieutenant general
Lieutenant general;
	Flag of a lieutenant general
	Rank insignia of a lieutenant general
Country	India
Service branch	Indian Army
Abbreviation	Lt Gen
Rank	Three-star rank
Next higher rank	General
Next lower rank	Major general
Equivalent ranks	Vice admiral (Indian Navy); Air marshal (Indian Air Force)

Last updated November 22, 2024

Lieutenant general is a three-star general officer rank in the Indian Army. It is the second-highest active rank in the Indian Army. Lieutenant generals rank above the two-star rank of Major General and below the four-star rank of General, which is held by the Chief of the Army Staff.

Army commanders (C-in-C grade)

Senior lieutenant generals who are in the C-in-C grade (army commanders), are considered to be in a grade higher than other lieutenant generals. They hold the most senior appointments like the Vice Chief of the Army Staff and the heads of the seven army commands (styled general officer commanding-in-chief). The seven GOC-in-C appointments are:

General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Command
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Command
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Command
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief South Western Command
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Army Training Command

Insignia

The badges of rank have a crossed sword and baton and Ashoka emblem above.^[1]

A lieutenant general wears gorget patches which are crimson patches with three golden stars. Army commanders in the C-in-C grade have additional oak leaves under the three golden stars.

Appointments

Officers in the rank of Lieutenant general hold important appointments like general officer commanding a corps. The Indian Army has 14 corps. The general officer commanding areas are also officers of the rank of Lieutenant general. Areas are static formations which consist of sub-areas. At army headquarters, the principal staff officers (PSO) are senior lieutenant generals. The Heads of Combat and Combat Support Arms, Heads of services and directorates (Director General) are officers of the rank of lieutenant general. The chiefs of staff of the seven commands of the Army are also of the rank of lieutenant general.

Order of precedence

A lieutenant general in the C-in-C grade ranks at No. 23 on the Indian order of precedence, along with vice admirals of the Indian Navy and air marshals of the Indian Air Force in the C-in-C grade. The other lieutenant generals rank at No. 24 in the order of precedence.^[2]

Lieutenant generals in the C-in-C grade are at the apex pay scale (pay level 17), with a monthly pay of ₹225,000 (US$3,100). Other lieutenant generals, in the HAG+ pay scale (pay level 16) draw lesser, depending on the years in service. However, since they should not draw equivalent or more than the next higher level, the remuneration is capped at ₹224,000.^[3]^[4]

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References

↑ "The Official Home Page of the Indian Army". www.indianarmy.nic.in.
↑ "President's Secretariat" (PDF). Office of the President of India. Rajya Sabha. 1979-08-26. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
↑ "Report of the Seventh Central Pay Commission" (PDF). 20 November 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-11-20.
↑ DelhiJune 29, India Today Web Desk New; June 29, India Today Web Desk New; Ist, India Today Web Desk New. "7th Pay Commission cleared: What is the Pay Commission? How does it affect salaries?". India Today.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

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[submaj-1] Risaldar major in cavalry and armoured regiments

[sub-2] Risaldar in cavalry and armoured regiments

[nbsub-3] Naib risaldar in cavalry and armoured regiments.
Called jemadar until 1965.

[4] "The Official Home Page of the Indian Army". www.indianarmy.nic.in.

[rajyasabha-5] "President's Secretariat" (PDF). Office of the President of India. Rajya Sabha. 1979-08-26. Retrieved 2010-08-05.

[6] "Report of the Seventh Central Pay Commission" (PDF). 20 November 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-11-20.

[7] DelhiJune 29, India Today Web Desk New; June 29, India Today Web Desk New; Ist, India Today Web Desk New. "7th Pay Commission cleared: What is the Pay Commission? How does it affect salaries?". India Today.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

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Equivalent ranks of Indian military
Indian Navy	Indian Army	Indian Air Force
Commissioned ranks
Admiral of the fleet	Field marshal	Marshal of the Indian Air Force
Admiral	General	Air chief marshal
Vice admiral	Lieutenant general	Air marshal
Rear admiral	Major general	Air vice marshal
Commodore	Brigadier	Air commodore
Captain	Colonel	Group captain
Commander	Lieutenant colonel	Wing commander
Lieutenant commander	Major	Squadron leader
Lieutenant	Captain	Flight lieutenant
Sub lieutenant	Lieutenant	Flying officer
Junior commissioned ranks
Master chief petty officer 1st class	Subedar major ^{[Alt 1]}	Master warrant officer
Master chief petty officer 2nd class	Subedar ^{[Alt 2]}	Warrant officer
Chief petty officer	Naib subedar ^{[Alt 3]}	Junior warrant officer
Non-commissioned ranks
Petty officer	Havildar / Daffadar	Sergeant
Leading seaman	Naik / Lance-Daffadar	Corporal
Seaman 1	Lance naik/ Acting Lance-Daffadar	Leading aircraftsman
Seaman 2	Sepoy / Sowar	Aircraftsman
Footnotes
↑ Risaldar major in cavalry and armoured regiments ↑ Risaldar in cavalry and armoured regiments ↑ Naib risaldar in cavalry and armoured regiments. Called jemadar until 1965.